Partially neutralized polycarboxylic acids for acid-sanding

ABSTRACT

The present invention is directed to a powder acid-sanding composition comprising partially neutralized polycarboxylic acid selected from malic acid, citric acid, fumaric acid, adipic acid, and mixtures thereof, and at least one of a sugar and sweetener for confectionery products. The partially neutralized polycarboxylic acid improves the stability in terms of acid migration into the candy and moisture uptake from the environment. 
     The invention is further directed to a method for acid-sanding of confectionery products using a partially neutralized polycarboxylic acid and to the products obtained.
 
The acid-sanded confectionery products as for example hard and soft candies of the invention have an improved shelf life. The present invention also results in acid-sanded confectionery products with an immediately felt sour taste and of a constant strength at bringing it in the mouth and digesting it.
 
Soft-candies as e.g. gelatin or starch-based candies with an acid-sanding according to the invention have a very stable acid profile at the surface of the acid-sanded candies since acid migration into the soft candy is decreased or even prevented.

This nonprovisional application claims the benefit of U.S. ProvisionalApplication No. 60/786,840, filed Mar. 29, 2006.

This invention relates to a composition for acid-sanding ofconfectionery products comprising a partially neutralized polycarboxylicacid selected from malic acid, citric acid, fumaric acid, and/or adipicacid and to a method for said acid-sanding of confectionery products.Further, the invention comprises the confectionery products with anacid-sanding comprising said partially neutralized polycarboxylic acid.

Sanding of confectionery products consists of making fine crystals (thesanding) adhere to the surface of the confectionery products bymoistening said products beforehand with relatively dry steam or with ahot solution of a adhering agent such as for example gum arabic or acarbohydrate syrup as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,527,542.

The moistened products are then contacted with the sanding mixture. Saidcontacting can be done in various ways as described in prior art. Anexample is a rotating pan in which the confectionery products are mixedwith the sanding composition. Another generally applied process is tospray or sprinkle the sanding composition over the moistened candies.The sanded candies are subsequently dried. This can also be done invarious ways as known to the person skilled in the art.

Confectionery products that are very suited for sanding are for examplehard candies as lolly-pops gelatin-based or starch-based soft candies.Further, chewing gum, toffees, jelly-beans and the like can also be usedin acid-sanding applications.

In general the state of art refers to sugar-sanding and/or acid-sanding.Sugar sanding is directed to application of a sugar sanding onconfectionery products wherein said sugar sanding not necessarilycomprises acidulants in contrast to acid-sanding compositions.

The main objective of an acid-sanding process is to provideconfectionery products like candies that have an instant sour taste whenbrought into the mouth. Further, this sour taste should stay at aconstant strength during the digestion of the candies. The sour tastecan be generated by using acid-sanding compositions comprisingacidulants as for example citric acid, malic acid, lactic acid, fumaricacid, adipic acid, and tartaric acid. These acids are well-known foodacids used in confectionery for various purposes. Malic acid, citricacid, lactic acid and fumaric acid are applied for acid-sandingpurposes.

When used for acid-sanding, said acids are in general applied directlyin the acid form. The acid in powder form is then mixed with sugarcrystals in order to create a sanding composition. A commonly knownalternative hereto is to use coated or encapsulated acids as describedin for example US 2002/0122842 which is directed to chewing-gumapplications.

The food acids may be coated with a fat or starch layer or with an oilcomposition after which the coated products are mixed with the otheracid-sanding components.

The application of the acids in free form or in coated/encapsulated formhave however several disadvantages.

Acids as citric acid, malic acid and lactic acid are hygroscopic. Due tothis uptake of moisture direct application of these acids in their acidform for acid-sanded candies will result in sticky and unattractivelywet-looking candies with reduced sour taste.

Further, soft-candies as e.g. gelatin or starch-based candies contain toup about 10% water. Consequently, the hygroscopic acids will partiallymigrate into the candies resulting in a lower concentration of acid atthe surface of the candy leading to a loss in strength of the directlysensed sour taste at introducing the candy into the mouth.

Application of coated or encapsulated organic acids in acid-sandingsolves the above described problems of moisture uptake and acidmigration as the coating would form a barrier around the hygroscopicacid. WO 2004/012534 describes coated or encapsulated crystalline lacticacid. Said coated lactic acid is next to coated malic acid often usedfor acid-sanding applications.

Prior art describes various types of coating or encapsulation. Fats,starches or other carbohydrates are often used as coating orencapsulation layers in confectionery applications. US 2002/0122842describes the coating or encapsulation or acids by polyvinyl acetate,which is a rubbery synthetic polymer, for chewing gum applications.

Coated or encapsulated acids have however the disadvantage that there isno instant or immediate acid release at the surface of the acid-sandedcandy when bringing the candy into the mouth since a prolonged time isrequired for first dissolving the coating or encapsulation layer. Thiscoating or encapsulation agents used further often negatively influencetaste and/or texture of the sanding or of the candy itself. Anotherdisadvantage is that the coating or encapsulation layer often partly isdestroyed in the process of mixing the sugar with the coated acids toform the acid-sanding composition. Consequently the coating looses itsfunctionality.

On top of this, the process of coating or encapsulation of acids iscomplex and requires additional auxiliary materials and expensiveequipment as for example spray driers or extruders. As a result coatedand encapsulated acids are relative expensive for use in acid-sandingapplications.

The present invention provides a solution to above-mentioned problems.The invention increases the shelf life of acid-sanded confectioneryproducts significantly. The present invention also results inacid-sanded confectionery products with an immediately felt sour tasteand of a constant strength at bringing it in the mouth and digesting it.Said products do not contain any taste or texture influencing andexpensive coating or encapsulation agents. The present invention furtherresults in soft-candies as e.g. gelatin or starch-based candies with astable constant acid profile at the surface of the acid-sanded candies.

Hereto, the present invention is directed to a powder acid-sandingcomposition comprising partially neutralized polycarboxylic acid and atleast one of a sugar and sweetener.

The expression “partially neutralized polycarboxylic acid” means that inthe polycarboxylic acid at least one carboxylic acid group isneutralized and that at least one carboxylic acid group is in the freeacid form. Said neutralized carboxylic acid group is in the salt form.An example hereof is the monosalt of malic acid such as e.g. sodiumhydrogen malate, hereinafter also referred to as monosodium malate.

Thus a partially neutralized polycarboxylic acid can also be an acidwith several carboxylic groups of which one or more groups areneutralized. An example are the mono- and di-salts of citric acid: e.g.sodium dihydrogen citrate (also referred to as monosodium citrate) hasone neutralized carboxylic group and disodium hydrogen citrate (alsoreferred to as disodium citrate) has two neutralized carboxylic groups.

The cation(s) in the partially neutralized polycarboxylic acid accordingto the invention, such as for example the above-mentioned mono- anddi-salts of malic acid and citric acid is not limited to sodium but mayalso be for example potassium or another alkali metal or may be adivalent (e.g. calcium or magnesium) or trivalent cation.

When divalent or trivalent cations are used, respectively two and threecarboxylic groups are neutralized by one cation.

It has been found that a partially neutralized acid has severalfunctionalities: the acid group(s) provides a sour taste on the one handand on the other hand the acid becomes more stable with respect to acidmigration and moisture uptake due to the presence of said neutralizedacid group(s). This combination of functionalities makes the acid verysuited for use in acid-sanding of confectionery products. As a result anacid-sanding composition comprising such a partially neutralizedpolycarboxylic acid also was found to be more stable while providing thedesired sour taste sensation.

Complete neutralization of the polycarboxylic acid is possible. In priorart, use is often made of for example sodium citrate. As is commonlyknown, sodium citrate is used to refer to the completely neutralizedcitric acid, i.e. sodium tri-citrate, and thus not to partiallyneutralized citric acid. Complete neutralization will not render thedual functionality that is obtained with a partially neutralizedpolycarboxylic acid. The slightly acidic saliva in the mouth will beable to donate the acid protons needed to reverse neutralization andform acidic end groups resulting in a sour taste sensation in the mouth,but this will take a prolonged time. Depending on the neutralizedpolycarboxylic acid this may in some cases even take longer than theactual time needed for digestion. The desired instant sour tasteintroduced by a partially neutralized polycarboxylic acid will thus notbe achieved.

JP 05-097664 describes a dry syrup composition comprising hydrochloricacid BIFEMERAN®, a wax, a water-insoluble nature coating agent and acorrigent. The corrigent may be for example sodium citrate, sodiumtartrate, potassium hydrogen tartrate and sodium hydrogen succinate orsodium disuccinate. Both potassium hydrogen tartrate and sodium hydrogensuccinate are partially neutralized carboxylic acids. The corrigent isused together with other components such as e.g. mannitol to mask thebitterness of hydrochloric acid BIFEMERAN®, which is a cerebral bloodvessel nature neurologic manifestation improvement agent. Said agent ismixed with the corrigent and mannitol to form a powder which issubsequently coated with a wax and the water-insoluble coating agent.

In the present invention the partially neutralized polycarboxylic acidis selected from malic acid, citric acid, fumaric acid, adipic acid andmixtures thereof. It was found that above-mentioned acids in theirpartially neutralized form have very suitable characteristic tasteprofiles for application in acid-sanding of confectionery products.Further, it has been found that an acid-composition comprising one orseveral of above-mentioned partially neutralized acids is very stable interms of hygroscopicity and acid migration.

Examples of above-mentioned partially neutralized polycarboxylic acidsare the mono- and di-salts of malic and citric acid.

A preferred embodiment of the present invention is an acid-sandingpowder composition comprising partially neutralized malic acid as forexample monosodium malate or monopotassium malate. Said composition wasfound to have a very acceptable sour taste and an excellent stability.Dynamic Vapor Sorption (DVS) demonstrated that a composition comprisingan alkali mono-salt of malic acid does not show any moisture uptake fromthe environment. The sour taste was experienced to stay constant evenover three months and six months of storage.

Beside the mono-salt of malic acid, the mono- or di-salt of citric acid,particularly the sodium and potassium salts, and the acid-sandingcomposition comprising said mono- and di-salts showed a very stabileperformance in terms of moisture uptake and acid migration resulting ina constant taste profile.

The acid-sanding composition according to the invention may furthercomprise lactic acid or a lactate salt and/or a combination hereof. Thelactic acid may be present as encapsulated crystalline or liquid lacticacid or as lactic acid on a lactate carrier. This latter product iscommercially available as PURAC Powder®55 or PURAC Powder®60(hereinafter referred to as respectively PP55 and PF60).

Crystalline lactic acid and PP55 or PP60 have a stronger immediatelysensed sour taste than the mono-salt of malic acid but said sour tasteis not experienced to be as “long-lasting” as the mono-salt of malicacid. It was found that an acid-sanding composition comprising mono-saltof malic acid in combination with lactic acid or PP55 or PP60 providesan immediate and strong sour taste with a lingering effect.

Good results with respect to the taste sensation were further found inapplication of an acid-sanding composition comprising a combination of amono-salt of malic acid with coated malic acid and/or fumaric acid.Coated malic acid and fumaric acid in combination with mono-salt ofmalic acid was found to give a very characteristic desired tastesensation. The same applied to above described composition furthercomprising lactic acid and/or P55 and/or PP60. Beside the partiallyneutralized polycarboxylic acid and other above-mentioned componentsaccording to the invention, all conventional ingredients used in sandingof food products may be present in the sanding composition.

Depending on the confectionery products used for acid-sanding theweight-based ratio of sugar to acid in the acid-sanding composition mayrange from 99:1 to 55:45. Preferred is a sanding composition with atotal acid content ranging from 3 up to 20 wt % on total sandingcomposition and most preferred is a content of between 5 and 12 wt % oftotal acid on sanding composition. Variation in the total acid contentand in the type of acids used is of course dependent on the desired sourtaste profile and strength. Each acid has its own strength andcharacteristic flavor.

The sugar used may be regular sugar as commonly used in confectionerybut may also include the use of sweeteners as for example polyols(xylitol, maltitol, etc.) or aspartame. The term “sugar” herein meansany mono- and di-sugar that is commonly used as sweetening agent. Theamount of sugar and/or sweetener is 5 to 99 wt % of the composition.Often sugar is used with a particle size between 200 and 500 micron. Theother components in the sanding composition as e.g. the acids will havea similar particle size in order to prevent segregation in the sandingcomposition. The powdery composition therefore has an average particlesize of 200 to 500 micron, preferably 250 to 400 micron.

Further, agents with a specific functionality may be added to the sugarsanding composition as for example coloring agents or agents influencingtaste, preserving agents, food fortification agents or adhering agentsfor better adherence of the sanding composition to the candy.

The present invention is further directed to a method for acid-sandingof confectionery products wherein said products are contacted with a hotsolution comprising dry steam and/or an adhering agent after which saidmoistened products are contacted with an acid-sanding composition asdescribed above.

It was found that the method of acid-sanding according to the inventionis most suited for application on hard or soft candies. Examples ofsuited hard candies are lolly-pops and other sweets but also chewing gumis included.

Examples of soft candies are wine gums, sour worms, apple rings orpeaches and marshmallows but also toffees and jelly-beans are included.

The hard candies obtainable via the acid-sanding method of the presentinvention proved to have a significantly increased shelf life. Afterthree and also after six months of storage said candies showed nosignificant loss in sour taste while the appearance of the candies alsostayed acceptable.

The soft candies and especially gelatin-based and starch-based softcandies were also found to have an increased shelf life. The candiesshowed no migration of acids from the surface of the candies into thecore of the candies and the sour taste sensation remained constant overthree and even six months of storage.

The following non-limiting examples illustrate the invention.

Experiment I

The migration of acids into soft-candies is qualitatively mimicked bymeasurement of the migration of acids in time in a gelatin-based gel onwhich an acid-sanding is sprinkled.

Gels were made by solving 84 grams of gelatin (250 Bloom) in 156 gramsof water in a water bath at 80° C. A mixture of 342 grams of sugar and512.4 grams of glucose syrup 42DE was added to 105.6 grams of water andmixed in a pan on a hot plate at 116° C. After mixing, the mixture wasleft to cool down to 80° C.

Said mixture was added to the gelatin solution and after mixing 0.6grams of methyl red indicator were added and mixing was continued.

About 50 grams of the resulting mixture were put in a glass tube (Ø 3cm), after which the tube was sealed off with a cap and the mixture wasleft to dry for 1 day at room temperature.

After one day 0.4 grams of an acid-sanding mixture were sprinkled on topof the gels. Acid-sanding mixtures of the following compositions wereused:

-   -   1. PURAC Powder® 55 (PP55) from PURAC Biochem B.V    -   2. Sodium hydrogen malate (hereinafter referred to as monosodium        malate (MSM) or monomalate)    -   3. Encapsulated malic acid 95% (EMA) from Balchem, S-121.        Coating consists of partially hydrogenated vegetable oil.    -   4. PP55+Encapsulated malic acid (weight based ratio 50:50).    -   5. Mono sodium malate+fumaric acid (Acros, MA&-019) (in weight        based ratio 50:50).    -   6. Encapsulated citric acid 95% (ECA) from Balchem, S-167.    -   7. PP55+Encapsulated citric acid (weight based ratio 50:50).    -   8. Coated citric acid (CCA) from Raps, S-201. Coating consists        of maltodextrin and guar gum.

The monosodium malate was made via crystallization as follows: In a 5 Lbeaker glass 1.08 Kg of malic acid (from Merck, 383) and 1.04 Kg ofdemi-water were mixed using a mechanical stirrer (IKA Rw20) followed byaddition of 642 g of a 50%-sodium hydroxide solution. The temperatureincreased to about 70° C. The resulting solution was left to cool downto room temperature.

After cooling down the resulting suspension was centrifuged. Thecrystals were dried under air of 60° C.

After sprinkling the acid-sanding compositions (in duplo) on top of thegels, the tubes were closed with rubber caps. The acid-sanded gels werestored at 20° C./60% R.H. [=Relative Humidity] and at 35° C./70% R.H.

The acid migration was followed by visual observation of the change incolor of the methyl red indicator present in the gels from yellow (athigh pH) into red (at low pH). Said migration was followed during acouple of days of storage of the gels at different storage conditionsand the results are shown in Table 1.1 and Table 1.2. The results arethe average of duplicate samples.

TABLE 1.1 Acid migration (mm) in gelatin gels (Aw (water activity at 20°C.) of the gel is 0.74, storage conditions 20° C./60% (R.H.)) Migrationin mm after time Acid-sanding in days composition 0 4 11 17 23 PP55 0 01.5 2 2.5 Monosodium malate 0 0 0 0 0 Encaps. Malic acid 0 0 0 0 0PP55 + Encaps. 0 0 1.5 1.5 2 Malic acid Monosodium malate + fumaric 0 00 0 0 acid Encaps. Citric acid 0 0 0 0 0 PP55 + Encaps. 0 0 0.5 1 1.5Citric acid Coated citric acid 0 0 0 1 2

The results show that an acid-sanding comprising monosodium malate or amixture of monosodium malate with fumaric acid is very stable at 20°C./60% R.H. There is no noticeable migration of the partiallyneutralized acid into the gelatins. In contrast hereto, a relative clearmigration is observed of the acid-sandings comprising PP55 or coatedcitric acid.

TABLE 1.3 Acid migration (mm) in gelatin gels (Aw gel 0.74, storageconditions 35° C./70% R.H.) Migration in mm after time Acid-sanding indays composition 0 4 11 17 23 PP55 0 2 4 5 6 Monosodium malate 0 0 0 0 0Encaps. Malic acid 0 1.5 2 3 4 PP55 + Encaps. 0 2 3 4.5 6 Malic acidMonosodium malate + fumaric 0 0 0 0 0 acid Encaps. Citric 0 0 0.5 1 1acid PP55 + Encaps 0 0 2 2.5 4 citric acid Coated citric acid 0 0 2 2.53.5

The results show that at in an environment with higher relative humidityand with a higher temperature (35° C.; 70% R.H.) for all acid-sandingcompositions a migration of the acid-sanding components into the gels isobserved except for the acid-sanding composition that consists ofmonosodium malate or of a mixture of monosodium malate with fumaricacid. The acid-sanded gel comprising encapsulated citric acid shows arelatively low acid migration.

Experiment II

The stability of monosodium malate and the stabilizing influence ofmonosodium malate in an acid-sanding mixture further comprising ahygroscopic acid like lactic acid is demonstrated in the followingexperiment directed to the migration of hygroscopic acids into softcandies.

In the same manner as in the former experiment gelatin-based gels weremade.

On top of the gels 0.25 grams of an acid-sanding composition weresprinkled. The acid-sanding composition consists of PURAC Powder® 55 andmono sodium malate, which was made in a similar way as described inexperiment I. Two different weight-based ratios were used: a 70/30 wt %PP55/monosodium malate ratio and a 50:50 ratio.

The tubes with the acid-sanded gels were closed with rubber caps andstored at 20° C./60% R.H. and at 35° C./70% R.H.

The Tables below show the acid migration in the gelatin-based gels afterstorage. The results are the average of duplicate samples.

TABLE 2.1 Acid migration in gelatin-based gels (Aw (Water activity at20° C.) of the gels 0.764, storage conditions 20° C./60% R.H.) Migrationin mm after time in days Acid 0 3 6 9 12 16 21 PP55 0 0.0 1.0 2.5 2.32.5 2.5 Monosodium malate 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 70:30 ratio 0 0.01.0 1.8 1.8 2.3 2.3 50:50 ratio 0 0.0 0.0 1.0 1.0 1.3 1.3

TABLE 2.2 Acid migration in gelatin-based gels (Aw gel 0.764, storageconditions 35° C./70% R.H.) Migration in mm after time in days Acid 0 36 9 12 16 21 PP55 0 2 2 4 3.5 4 5.5 Monosodium malate 0 0 0 0 0 0 070:30 0 0 2 2 2.75 3 3.25 50:50 0 0 0 3 2.25 3 3

The results demonstrate the high hygroscopicity of PP55 in contrast tothe stability of the acid-sanding comprising of 100% monosodium malate.The migration of the acids into the gels can be decreased by addition ofmonosodium malate to the acid-sanding as is demonstrated by the lesserdegree of migration that was measured.

Experiment III

The stability of monosodium malate with respect to the uptake ofmoisture from the environment and the stabilizing influence ofmonosodium malate in a acid-sanding mixture further comprising ahygroscopic acid like lactic acid was also measured using the commonlyknown technique of Dynamic Vapor Sorption (DVS).

Table 3.1 below shows the composition of the mixtures that wereanalyzed.

Used were PURAC Powder® 55 (PP55) and PURAC Powder) 60 (PP60) from PURACBiochem BV and mono sodium malate as made in a similar manner asdescribed in Experiment I.

TABLE 3.1 Composition samples (percentages are weight based) PP60Monosodium Sample (wt %) PP55 (wt %) malate (wt %) 1 — — 100 2 50 — 50 3— 50 50 4 70 — 30 5 30 — 70

Table 3.2. shows the results. The results in the “sorption” part of theDVS curve demonstrate that monosodium malate is very stable: it does notabsorb water at all.

It is also demonstrated that with a higher concentration of monosodiummalate present in the acid-sanding mixture that further comprises ahygroscopic acid, the stability of the mixture is increased resulting ina decrease of the rate and amount of moisture uptake. The presence ofmonosodium malate thus positively influences the shelf life of hard andsoft candies with respect to both the appearance of the candy and thetaste sensation of the candy.

TABLE 3.2 Results of the DVS analysis Change Change Change Change Changein mass in mass in mass in mass in mass sample 1 sample 2 sample 3sample 4 sample 5 RH (%) (%) (%) (%) (%) (%) Start 0.0 0.7 0.2 0.7 1.6experiment (sorption part)  0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 10 0.0 0.2 0.0 0.2 0.020 0.0 0.2 0.0 0.3 0.1 30 0.0 0.3 0.0 0.6 0.2 40 0.0 0.6 0.0 0.9 0.3 50−0.1 0.9 0.1 1.4 0.4 60 −0.1 1.4 0.1 2.0 0.7 70 −0.2 2.5 0.4 3.7 1.7 80−0.1 23.9 12.7 31.2 16.2 90 −0.1 56.3 52.5 69.3 42.7

Experiment IV

Acid-sanded soft candies comprising monosodium malate or monosodiummalate in combination with PP55 were analyzed on taste by a taste panel.Two different types of soft candies were acid-sanded: starch basedcandies and gelatin based candies. The starch-based candies were sandedwith 8.2% and 40 wt % acid powder in a further sugar comprisingacid-sanding composition. The acid-sanding composition for thegelatin-based candies comprised 8.2 wt % acid.

Part of the candies was stored in a freezer directly after completion ofthe acid-sanding process (t=0). The other candies were stored for threemonths. The soft-candies with 8.2 wt % acid in the sanding mixture werekept an additional three months in storage.

The following materials were used:

-   -   Mono sodium malate (M.S.M.); product is made according to the        method described below using malic acid (from        Chemproha/Brenntag, in crystal form) and 50% sodium hydroxide        (from Chemproha/Brenntag) and demiwater    -   PURAC Powder® 55 from PURAC Biochem BV (PP55)    -   Gelatin-based soft candy    -   Starch-based soft candy    -   Sanding sugar and extra fine sugar

The mono sodium malate was made via crystallization as described below:

90 kg of malic acid were added to 86 kg of demi-water in a mixer at atemperature of 20 to 30° C. while stirring the solution. Some steam wasused to solve all malic acid. About 53.7 wt % of sodium hydroxidesolution was added to the mixer. The temperature increased to about 80°C. The solution was left overnight to cool down to room temperatureduring which mono sodium malate crystals were formed. The crystals wereseparated from the mother liquid by centrifuge and subsequently driedfor approximately three hours in an oven of 60° C.

The soft-candies were acid-sanded according to the commonly knownacid-sanding process wherein dry steam was used to moisten the candiesprior to spraying the acid-sanding composition over the candies. Equalamounts of ‘extra fine sugar’ and ‘sanding sugar’ are used. Theacid-sanding compositions further comprised the following differentweight-based ratios of mono-sodium-malate and PURAC Powder® 55 (P55):

1. 100 wt % PP55

2. 70:30 wt % PP55: monosodium malate

3. 50:50 wt % PP55: monosodium malate

4. 30:70 wt % PP55: monosodium malate

5. 100 wt % monosodium malate

Directly after production part of the candies was frozen in order toprevent or stop any acid migration and to have a representativereference at t=0. The other candies were stored at room temperature in aclosed bag.

The candies were tested on taste by panellists trained on the same basictastes in water. The candies at t=0 were compared in taste with thecandies after three months of storage (t=3) and after six months afterstorage (t=6). The software program Compusense, which is a very commonlyused tool for sensory evaluations as is known to the person skilled inthe art, was used to perform the test and to analyze the results. Thetaste is expressed in values ranking from 1 (least) to 5 (most) sournessfor the candies that were stored for three months and ranking from 0(not sour) to 10 (very sour) for the candies that were stored during 6months.

Table 4.1 shows the average results of the observed difference in tasteof the candies at t=0 and the candies after three months of storage.Column 2 of the Table shows the weight-based ratio of PP55 tomono-sodium malate (MSM) that was used in the acid-sanding of thecandies. Column 3 presents the number of panellists that selected the“fresh” candies at t=0 as being the most sour tasting candies comparedto the candies that were stored for three months.

TABLE 4.1 Comparison taste test of t = 0 versus t = 3 months ‘old’candies Nr. of panellists Type of candy P255:MSM t = 0 most sour Sourworms, 100:0  10 of 11 8.2% acid in 70:30 9 of 9 sanding 50:50 11 of 1130:70 6 of 9  0:100  6 of 11 Sour Jacks, 100:0  10 of 11 8.2% acid in70:30 10 of 10 sanding 50:50  8 of 11 30:70  8 of 10  0:100  5 of 11

As can be observed in above Table, the acid-sanded candies comprisingsolely PP55 as acid-component are experienced by the majority of thepanellists to have a significant less sour taste after three months ofstorage compared to the same candies at t=0. The explanation can befound in the moisture that is taken up by the hygroscopic lactic acid ofPP55 and that has consequently a diluting effect with respect to thesour taste of the candies.

In the case of a candy with solely monosodium malate as theacid-component in the acid-sanding composition, less panellists foundthe candies at t=0 the more sour than the candies that were stored forthree months. Apparently, the presence of monosodium malate in theacid-sanding prevents' or stabilizes the uptake of moisture from theenvironment and thus the taste sensation is kept comparable after threemonths of storage to the taste of the fresh candies at t=0.

Table 4.2 shows the average results of the observed difference in tasteof the fresh candies at t=0 and the candies after six months of storage.

TABLE 4.2 Results of taste test of t = 0 versus t = 6 months ‘old’candies Panellists selected Value on Value on Type of t = 0 as scale atscale at candy PP55:MSM. most sour t = 0 t = 6 Sour worms, 100:0  8 outof 8 8.6 5.5 8.2% acid 70:30  9 out of 11 6.6 4.7 in sanding 50:50 8 outof 8 6.7 3.1 30:70  9 out of 10 6.4 4.6  0:100 5 out of 8 6 5.5 SourJacks, 100:0   9 out of 10 7.2 4.6 8.2% acid 70:30 9 out of 9 7.1 3.8 insanding 50:50 8 out of 8 6.7 3.8 30:70 9 out of 9 6.2 4.6  0:100  6 outof 10 5.1 4.6

The results show that the candies comprising lactic acid in the form ofPP55 in the acid-sanding have significantly lost their sour taste oversix months of storage. The presence of monosodium malate is much betterable to prevent this loss in taste and shows a stabilizing effect whenlooking at the taste expressed on a ranking scale from 0 to 10. Thisranking shows a decreased difference in taste between the fresh and thestored candies as there is more monosodium malate present in theacid-sanding. In contrast hereto, the candies with an acid-sandingcomprising sugar and solely monosodium malate do have a similar sourtaste after six months of storage compared to the fresh candies.

1. Powder acid-sanding composition comprising partially neutralizedpolycarboxylic acid selected from malic acid, citric acid, fumaric acid,adipic acid, and mixtures thereof and at least one of a sugar andsweetener.
 2. Composition of claim 1 comprising 1 to 45 wt % of apartially neutralized polycarboxylic acid wherein the weight ratio sugarand/or sweetener:acid is 99:1 to 55:45.
 3. Composition of claim 1wherein the amount of sugar and/or sweetener is 5 to 99 wt % of thecomposition.
 4. Composition of claim 1 wherein said partiallyneutralized polycarboxylic acid is potassium- or sodium hydrogen malateor a mono- or di-salt of citric acid.
 5. Composition of claim 1 furthercomprising lactic acid and/or calcium lactate.
 6. Composition of claim 1further comprising fumaric acid and/or coated malic acid.
 7. Method foracid-sanding of confectionery products wherein said products arecontacted with dry steam or a hot solution of an adhering agent afterwhich the moistened products are contacted with the acid-sandingcomposition of claim
 1. 8. Acid-sanded confectionery products having anacid-sanding comprising the composition of claim
 1. 9. Acid-sandedconfectionery products of claim 1 wherein said confectionery productsare hard or soft candies.